Quiet Riding

Horses and Riders Working in Harmony


Horses in the Fog

Balance

[As additional resources, links to book reviews and book purchasing information can be found beneath the quotations when this information is available.]

"With the neck high, the hocks are easily brought under the centre of the body, and the action of the fore legs becomes lofty. In a word, raising the neck gives good equilibrium and grace by lightness."

James Fillis, Breaking and Riding
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"Equilibrium, which is the result of getting the horse in hand, gives mobility, namely, the facility of instantly doing, without effort or fatigue, every required movement at all paces."

James Fillis, Breaking and Riding
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"When a horse lacks balance, he's going to be short on confidence."

Bill Dorrance and Leslie Desmond, True Horsemanship Through Feel
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"Improving balance and prolonging soundness in the horse will depend on your ability to call upon your horse to use specific muscle groups when he moves forward over the ground carrying you on his back."

Donna Snyder–Smith, The Classic Western Rider
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"Natural balance is the communication between two beings by the most subtle, almost invisible, signals, minute changes in the centre of gravity and through pure thought and feeling."

Klaus Ferdinand Hempfling, Dancing with Horses
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"...the horse must be placed in a position of balance to enable him to react at a moment's notice."

Sylvia Loch, The Classical Rider
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"Comparisons should be drawn between the riding position and the standing position, the student always aiming to be balanced over their feet in both cases."

Sylvia Loch, The Classical Rider
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"...only from a deep understanding of posture could balance be achieved and maintained."

Sylvia Loch, The Classical Rider
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"A horse carrying an out-of-balance rider must alter its natural stance and footfall, which makes its job more difficult."

Kathleen Schmitt, The Seamless Seat
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"A way of moving that is not overly big yet is rhythmical and elastic, an active hind leg, and a mobile back are prerequisites for a rider to be able to balance the horse and later achieve collection."

Dr. Gerd Heuschmann, Balancing Act
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"Self-carriage implies that the horse is able to carry himself in balance without any support from the reins."

Dr. Gerd Heuschmann, Balancing Act
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"Even a horse with near perfect conformation can and must reestablish his balance while developing the muscles necessary for carrying a rider."

Dr. Gerd Heuschmann, Balancing Act
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"Every horse must give the back before he can move in balance. The back of the riding horse is precious!"

Dr. Gerd Heuschmann, Balancing Act
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"The natural horizontal balance is the prerequisite for vertical balance (straightness) and this is the prerequisite for correct collection."

Dr. Gerd Heuschmann, Balancing Act
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"In the ideal case, a good rider on a well-trained horse can use her seat to change the balance from maximum extension of the horse's trunk to maximum shortening of the trunk."

Dr. Gerd Heuschmann, Balancing Act
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"Balance refers to not just 'front and back,' 'left and right,' but also to 'above and below.'"

Dr. Gerd Heuschmann, Balancing Act
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"Balance can only be achieved when you regard the horse as a harmonious whole. It is impossible to seize on sections and mechanically work on them in an effort to relax and balance the whole."

Dr. Gerd Heuschmann, Balancing Act
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"Fundamental basic balance comes out of Rhythm, Suppleness and Contact."

Dr. Gerd Heuschmann, Balancing Act
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"Correction of a falsely balanced horse (leg mover or hyperflexed back mover) is accomplished only through stepping-over exercises like leg-yielding."

Dr. Gerd Heuschmann, Balancing Act
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"He has to develop his hindquarters and back muscles to be able to stay balanced for any length of time."

Mary Twelveponies, Everyday Training: Backyard Dressage
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"If you are not in balance with the horse, you will continually upset his balance, making it difficult for him to do his best work."

Mary Twelveponies, Everyday Training: Backyard Dressage
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"Slightly firmer contact and firmer closing of your legs during the transition will help him keep his balance."

Mary Twelveponies, Everyday Training: Backyard Dressage
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"When a horse is relaxed and yielded to the bit, the better balanced he becomes, the lighter he gets on the reins because he's in a better position to carry himself and make changes in gaits, speed and direction."

Mary Twelveponies, Everyday Training: Backyard Dressage
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"Balance is central to all movement, for a horse just as it is for a rider, and the rider must not interfere with the horse's balance."

Magali Delgado & Frédéric Pignon, Gallop to Freedom
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"It is only by doing everything slowly and calmly that one can develop this sense of balance and prepare for faster or more demanding work."

Magali Delgado & Frédéric Pignon, Gallop to Freedom
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